The Shifter and the Tiefling
by Rika the Strange
Summary: Series of oneshots featuring everyone's favorite Tiefling and a HalfElven Shifter. Nathyrra and Deekin also make appearances. Please R&R :3
1. Kitten

Hey! Rika T. Strange here with a quick one-shot. Hope y'all like it, and please reveiw! If you don't, you'll make Deekin cry D:

-

-

-

"Shut up, Valen!" Aleesha snapped, pulling the blanket more tightly about her sparsely clothed self. "You think I wanted to get sick?!"

"I am merely saying that we should not let it delay us..." Valen kept his steady gaze turned away from her as he spoke. "We don't have much time before the Valsharess makes her next move."

The Half-elf shouted in frustration and struggled to her feet. "Listen to me, you stubborn son of a bitch! I know we have stuff to do! I know the Valsharess is practically knocking on our-" She paused and shook her head. "Knocking on the Seer's doorstep! But until I'm over this sickness I can't do anything!"

"You fought at the temple easily enough," Valen said coolly.

"That was... Different," Aleesha huffed, collapsing back onto the makeshift bed Nathyrra had pulled together for her. "This is because of my blood."

That caught Valen's interest. He turned to look at her, his hard eyes boring into hers. "And what does that mean, exactly?"

"I didn't learn to be a Shifter like most Druids," Aleesha responded, squirming slightly under his intense stare. "My mother thinks my father has a were creature's bloodline. Otherwise I'd probably be more of a 'Quarter-elf', then a Half-elf. It's uncommon, but not completely unheard of for a Druid to learn to harness that trace of blood and become a Shifter."

"I still don't see a problem," Valen replied, turning away once more.

"Because I've had Deekin keep you out of here until now!" The young woman growled in frustration and threw a nearby pebble at the Tiefling. It bounced harmlessly off his armor with a slight 'dink'. "My shifting's uncontrolled! I could turn into a White Wyrmling at the drop of a hat! Or I could be talking with someone and shift into a Medusa! Do you want me to-" Aleesha sneezed loudly and violently. "Do you want me to turn someone to stone?"

"It depends on who it is," Valen replied, secretly smiling beneath his stoic mask. "Maybe you should speak with Deekin more often."

"Augh!" Aleesha threw another rock at him. "You're impossible!"

"On the contrary, you're the one who refuses to continue with our journey. It's been two days already."

Aleesha quite literally roared in frustration and picked him up in her huge jaws. She glared at him with the eyes of a Manticore, seeming to ask, 'now do you believe me?'

"I will break those jaws of yours if you don't set me down," Valen said calmly.

Aleesha dropped him roughly to the cave's floor and curled up in the far corner of the small cavern. A moment later she was human again. "I want to help the Seer, Valen. I believe that what she is doing is right. The Drow live like the Old Ones did, from what my mother told me of them. They'll become extinct like the Old Ones, too, if they don't learn to live with one another."

"Must everything you say be related to nature in some way?"

"I _am_ a Druid, Valen. I have been taught to look at things as the Earth Mother does." Aleesha shook her head and stumbled back to her makeshift bed and the slight warmth the blankets there provided. "Although sometimes-" Whatever else the Half-elf had meant to say was turned into the pathetic mewling of a purple, stripped kitten.

Valen looked over at her and cocked an eyebrow. "A purple kitten. How strange."

Aleesha hissed and scratched at his armored legs, not leaving marks but making a horrible screeching sound.

The Tiefling picked her up by the scruff of her neck, holding her at eye level and glaring at her. "You're lucky you're cute like this." He dropped her back onto the makeshift bed and sat down by the small fire pit Deekin had insisted on digging. Aleesha grinned mischievously, or as well as she could in her currant body, and pounced onto his shoulder. "I'll make fire and drop you in it," he threatened coolly, picking her up by the scruff once more. Aleesha looked at him with the cutest expression she could muster and watched as Valen's hardened glare slowly softened. "...Maybe I won't drop you in it," he said at last, setting her down on the ground. "But you'd better watch yourself." She inwardly laughed as he removed his gloves and started to make a fire, occasionally "accidentally" brushing against her soft fur when he reached for twigs and tinder.

The fire was well built and roaring when Deekin and Nathyrra returned from scouting the area and hunting for food. "BOSS!" Deekin shouted as he entered the cave. "BOSS, DEEKIN AND THE NICE DROW LADY IS BACK NOW! WE-" The faithful Kobold was cut short when Nathyrra clamped his mouth shut. He looked at the Drow woman wonderingly, until she pointed to Valen and Aleesha.

The Tiefling sat leaning against the cave's wall by the fire pit, snoring softly. In his lap lay a large, stripped purple kitten, sleeping soundly and nearly engulfed by the huge hand that rested on its back.

"Deekin thinks he will draw this for his book," he said quietly, grinning at Nathyrra. "What does Nathyrra think?"

"I think that Valen has a weakness for kittens..." Nathyrra laughed softly and sat down by the fire across from the Tiefling and Shifter, then began to skin the animal she had killed for their dinner. "Let's see what happens when they wake up." Deekin nodded enthusiastically and then returned to his drawing.

-

-

-

Well, that's all folks! Hope y'all enjoyed it. Just to make things clear, Aleesha is the Hero of Neverwinter's _daughter,_ not the Hero herself. Gotta love Artistic Freedom x3


	2. Wastes of Cania

He was a fool, he knew that. A damned fool. So she had flirted with him; called him handsome and tugged his tail once when he wasn't paying attention. More then a few females had done that. So she had clung to him for support in the Beholders' caves when she kept slipping and painfully falling on the greased floors, and listened patiently to him when he spoke of his past. That was unique to her... But she was so _young_, a Half-Elf of only 20 years. By the nine hells, she was barely an adult! He could easily be twice her age, if he actually knew how old he was.

Yet... He felt his heart flutter within his chest whenever she smiled at him. That damned, inexorably playful grin of hers drove him insane. She was always smiling when he spoke with her. Her brilliant blue eyes, so much like his own, seemed to glitter with an inner light when she spoke with him.

And she spoke with him all the time. To discuss tactics, to rearrange equipment, to merely see how he was doing. She never seemed to shut up, really. Even when she shifted into a form that couldn't speak, she growled, squeaked and roared all the same. Of course they were usually fighting enemies when she shifted...

She wasn't like other women, that was certain. Despite being half surface Elf, she harbored no ill will towards the followers of Eilistraee or even the Drow of House Maeviir. She was almost invariably genuinely happy to help whenever someone asked for her assistance. Although, there _was_ that time in Drearing's Deep, when the color had drained from her face upon realizing they would fight the undead... She trembled the whole way through the temple, and screamed with unadulterated terror when they first beheld the Draco-Lich Vix'thra. Fortunately Nathyrra had a spell to calm her down, but if she hadn't... Well, it wouldn't have surprised him if she'd fainted then and there. Part of him rationalized that she was only mortal, yet he knew she was also something more... But what was it?

_Amazing_. That's what she was; pure and simply amazing... And if they were as likely to die as he thought they were, it would be best say what he wanted to now.

"Aleesha..."

The Half-Elf turned and smiled at him, her shortish blue hair whipping about her face from the incessant, hellish winds of Cania. "Yes Valen? What would you like?"

"How you're able to smile at a time like this is beyond me."

Aleesha laughed and shrugged, her scalemail clinking gently. "Someone has to make the best of our situation, don't they? Now what do you want?"

"I love you," he replied quietly, his words ripped away by the merciless winds before they could reach her ears.

"What?" The Shifter called, struggling to be heard over the sudden gusts of wind. "I can't hear you! Let's find shelter and then talk!"

The Tiefling only nodded in response, his head spinning as he desperately tried to come up with something to say.

They reached the Quarry Office far too soon for his taste, although the warmth of the building was soothing. Aleesha set Deekin down onto the ground (she'd carried him thus far in an attempt to keep him warm) and the kobold scampered off to barter with the Quarry Boss for supplies.

"Now, what did you want to say earlier?" She asked, stretching briefly and then patting her dire bear companion on the head.

"I..." The Tiefling frowned and closed his mouth, trying to compose his thoughts and himself.

"Take your time," Aleesha said absently, seeming more concerned with the strange patterns on the Quarry Office's ceiling.

"We have not known each other long," he began slowly. "But I have come to regard you as a close friend, and..." He stopped, a steadily darkening blush creeping across his features. "I have come to feel quite close to you."

The Half-Elf continued to stare up at the ceiling as she spoke. "I feel close to you too, Valen," she replied blankly. By the pits of hell, she could be infuriating!

"I mean _very_ close," Valen continued on, hoping she would realize what he meant. "I feel more then a simple fondness for you, Aleesha... I-"

"BOSS!" Deekin screamed, hurtling toward the Shifter and slamming into her a moment later. "Deekin bought berries to start fires with!"

Aleesha laughed and placed the kobold on her companion's head. "That's wonderful, Deekin!" She fished around in her backpack and pulled out a small diamond. "Why don't you go sell this now?"

The kobold got an embarrassed expression on his face and shook his head. "Sorry boss, but Deekin can'ts. There be something big going to happen soon, and Deekin needs to be around to write it into epic story!"

"But you were away just a moment ago," the Half-Elf argued gently. "I'm sure a bit more wouldn't hurt."

Deekin grinned toothily at her. "Nope! The boss be really smart, but Deekin knows what's going on! Deekin will stay right here by the boss until something big happen."

Aleesha shook her head and sighed. "Alright..." The Shifter yawned widely; it had been a long, cold day. "I guess we'll be sleeping in the Gatehouse again..." The Half-Elf turned to him and tossed him a pouch of coins. "Valen, go buy some food from the Quarry Boss, since Deekin's refusing to leave my side at the moment."

The Tiefling nodded and did as the Shifter asked, feeling incredibly angry with the tiny kobold. So angry, in fact, that he swore right back at the Quarry Boss with enough fervor to nearly knock the Pit Fiend off his feet. The devil was so impressed that he gave him the food free of charge.

"Why he ignores my tanar'ri blood is beyond me," he thought pensively, returning to their small "camp" in the Reaper's Realm with this and many other thoughts weighing heavily on his mind. To his surprise, Nathyrra was there and helping set up the tents. The Drow smiled at him for a moment, then turned and said something to Aleesha that he couldn't hear. The Shifter walked over towards him a moment later.

"What... What was it you wanted to say earlier?" The Half-Elf asked, shifting her weight from foot to foot. She didn't smile at him now; she didn't even meet his gaze.

Valen swallowed hard and took a step forward. "Aleesha... You are the most amazing woman I have ever met." He took her hand and smiled hopefully at her. "I-"

"BOSS!" Deekin shouted, hurtling towards Aleesha once more.

The Shifter snatched the kobold up and glowered at him, holding him mere inches from her face. "SO HELP ME GOD IF YOU INTERRUPT HIM ONE MORE TIME I WILL RIP OUT YOUR ORGANS THROUGH HOLES YOU DIDN'T KNOW YOU HAD AND SHOVE THEM DOWN YOUR PUNY THROAT!"

Deekin stared at the Half-Elf with unblinking awe, not even flinching when she dropped him to the ground and turned back to face the Tiefling. The kobold simply sat and stared at her.

"I don't think I've ever seen you that angry," Valen said in awe.

"I've been angrier... Once." Aleesha responded quietly, her head turned away. "In Zorvak'Mur, when the warden threatened to make you a thrall."

"That made you angry?" The Tiefling asked, eyes slightly wide. "Why?"

"Because I care about you, Valen..." The Half-Elf was trembling as she spoke. "I don't want you to ever come to harm. I _love_ you."

"Aleesha..." He smiled softly. "I love you, too." He placed a rough hand on her cheek, then frowned deeply. "Why are you crying?"

The Half-Elf shook her head and grinned at him through her tears. "I never thought you would return my feelings... I had hoped, but never expected you to-"

He smiled and kissed her softly. "My lady... I have loved you since we first met."

She arched a skeptical eyebrow. "Truly?"

He shook his head and gently brushed away what tears remained on her face. "No, but it seemed like the right thing to say in order to lift your spirits."

Aleesha laughed out loud. "You best leave the story telling to Deekin, Val- my love."

The Tiefling grinned and helped the still-stunned kobold to his feet. "What do you think of that, kobold?"

"Deekin thinks whole world go _crazy_!" The bard shouted, eyes wide. "He will now writes all of this down for his epic book!" Deekin then proceeded stumble back towards his tent and collapse onto his makeshift bed.

"I shouldn't have yelled at him like that," Aleesha said sheepishly. "Do you think he'll be alright?"

"I think he will be fine, my love..." Valen smiled and took her hand. "...And so will we."


End file.
